I don’t know if you have seen or heard the Fray’s new song “You Found Me”. You can hear the song below and I also posted the lyrics after it.
I found God on the corner of First and Amistad
Where the west was all but won
All alone smoking His last cigarette
I said where You been, He said ask anythingWhere were You when everything was falling apart
All my days were spent by a telephone
That never rang and all I needed was a call
That never came to the corner of First and AmistadLost and insecure, You found me, You found me
Lying on the floor, surrounded, surrounded
Why’d You have to wait, where were You, where were You
Just a little late, You found me, You found meIn the end everyone ends up alone
Losing her, the only one who’s ever known
Who I am who I’m not and who I want to be
No way to know how long she will be next to meLost and insecure, You found me, You found me
Lying on the floor, surrounded, surrounded
Why’d You have to wait, where were You, where were You
Just a little late, You found me, You found meEarly morning the city breaks and I’ve been calling for years and years
You never left me no messages, You never send me no letters
You got some kind of nerve taking all I wantLost and insecure, You found me, You found me
Lying on the floor, where were You, where were You
Lost and insecure, You found me, You found me
Lying on the floor, surrounded, surrounded
Why’d You have to wait, where were You, where were You
Just a little late, You found me, You found me
Why’d You have to wait to find me, to find me
They recently played this song on our local Christian radio station and my wife was telling me that after they played it the DJ was talking about how it was kind of a depressing song, and sort of indicated that she (DJ) was shocked that they were playing it. And my wife agreed with her. We were discussing it this morning and she was stating that she felt that it wasn’t the best song just because they should only be playing songs that are a more positive viewpoint of Christianity. And I disagreed.
I stated that I disagreed and that we should give a more honest view of the Christian life, which is not all rosy and sunshiny. Sometimes life really stinks and that God would rather have us be honest with Him than try and hide our feelings, since He knows them anyway. Besides it is Biblical to share your honest feeling with God, even if that means being angry with Him. David did this a lot in the Psalms. Check out: Psalm 13:1-6 (How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?), Psalm 22 (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? ), Psalm 35:17-18 (How long, Lord, will you look on? Rescue me from their ravages), and Psalm 42:9-11 (Why have you forgotten me?). Don’t those words sound like someone who might be a bit angry with God?
But there is an important thing to remember in all of this and that is found in Ephesians 4:26.
“In your anger do not sin”
I think people need to see Christians as real people and not hiding behind these masks hiding how we really feel. I have many people tell me that what bothers them about Christians is that they are not real. They would rather see Christians admit to their true feelings.
And just because I may get angry with God at times that does not mean that I have abandoned my relationship with Him. Just like when my wife and I get into a disagreement that doesn’t mean that we have fallen out of love with each other. It just means that we have a differing viewpoints.
So I personally do not think that it is wrong to be angry with God and Scripture backs that point up. In fact, I would daresay that it can and will at times help us to build a closer relationship with Him. It is in the struggles of relationship that we can and should find ourselves growing closer together.
So I think that this song by the Fray is a great song to be played on the Christian radio station, because it shows us as real. You can read Isaac Slade’s thoughts on the song here. Being real with God is such an important thing and also very healthy. What do you think?
I agree Todd. God is big enough to handle our anger and as long as we realize that He uses all things…even the bad things…for the good of those who love Him, we can move past the anger and give Him all the glory. It took me a long time to get to this point, but now I know that it’s ok to be angry and He loves me anyway.
I love that song. I think God is big enough for people to get mad at… He can handle it!
In my journaling class last semester we had to write a dialogue with God. I let God have it. I was mad at him. The listening part of that dialogue was very telling. God replied with patience and pointed out some of the error in my thinking. I felt so much better after doing that exercise.
When I mentioned that to my Sunday school class the kids were mostly appalled. Should I be telling them that? Of course. God doesn’t want us to come before him and pretend or be phony. He wants all of us, our anger, our shame, our pain, and our joys. He wants the real us to come through. We can all be nice before God, or we can be honest. I think God prefers honest.
Beth, that is a great story. I think that it is something that the church needs to teach occasionally. It is a part of the Bible after all.
The part I disagreed with was the line that said God found him “just a little late” (oh and maybe the idea that God smokes cigarettes). I don’t believe God is ever “late”. It reminds me of when Jesus went to Lazarus’ tomb and Martha said the same thing. I think the d.j. was trying to put the same message across. I do like the song I just had a problem with a few of the lines.
I have to agree Todd (maybe because it seems I’m mad at Him so often). I often wonder about the songs we sing at church, how none of them include any of the anger or questions we see in some of the psalms. There are many times that I don’t feel like singing the words I see on the screen but would rather make up my own words(I doubt I’m alone here). I don’t know, Sunday morning worship probably isn’t the right time or place to express that. But I don’t see any reason why feelings of hurt and anger should not be expressed in a song played on the radio.
The lyrics from the song remind me of some from a favorite U2 song of mine:
Jesus can you take the time
To throw a drowning man a line
Peace on Earth
Tell the ones who hear no sound
Whose sons are living in the ground
Peace on Earth
Jesus this song you wrote
The words are sticking in my throat
Peace on Earth
We hear it every Christmas time
But hope and history won’t rhyme
So what’s it worth?
This peace on Earth.
Let me say that I love this song because of its honesty. i’m not sure the lyrics lend themselves to anger though.
I don’t seem them so much as displaying anger as much as it is someone who is just angry with God, because they feel He showed up to late.
I can kind of relate to that feeling at times and today especially.
Joe, I understand what you are saying, and I do think there is a place for expressing our anger, frustration, ect to God. However, I have to say that as frustrated, hurt and sad as I was after finding out we were not going to Texas, I forced myself to listen to worshipful songs all day (Matt Redman’s album “Facedown” was my favorite). Even though I didn’t feel like praising God at the moment, when I heard the song “Worthy” by Matt Redman I began to cry. No matter how upset I am at God He is still worthy to be praised. Even when we don’t feel like it. At the end of worship practice that evening, a huge weight felt like it was lifted off my chest. Bringing God praise finally turned my heart in the direction it needed to be. Off of me and on to Him.
I should add that I have even written songs or poetry that question where God is, so I am not against the song above for that reason. I was just trying to process the song and what it meant out loud to Todd and he took my processing as the way I felt indefinitely. I couldn’t even remember what the d.j. had said, I just remembered the point I thought she was trying to get across.
Just had to add that in.
I am posting a little late, I apologize.
Recently, two very tragic things have occurred- one directly related to my family and one, yesterday, to a family at our church. These two horrible things have me so upset with God. I don’t like to say angry, but I guess I am. I know there is a plan -a purpose- bigger and better than my small, human understanding can fathom, BUT it is so very hard. I am dreading the coming week, for I know what our Pastor will be preaching. It sounds cold and insensitive to tell grieving parents that it is somehow God’s will, when they are brokenhearted. It seems even worse to tell them to rejoice, for their child is now in Heaven. I would rather he take off HIS mask, and share their pain, and allow them all the anger they have, without guilt. I truly believe God loves us, even when we get a little mad.
Carol, I believe that if Jesus was here today that he would sit down with you and that other family, and that He would weep with you. I would even go as far as to say that He would even say that what happens really sucks.
However, in the midst of all that there would be a peace that comes over you and the other family, because He was there with you. The Bible says blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted. Sadly, we Christians somehow forget that and we miss the other part of the Bible that says mourn with those who mourn. Instead we offer platitudes that just don’t help.
I will be praying for you and this other family. It is okay to be angry and God even tells us that. He just warns us to not sin in our anger. But mourn and know that you will be comforted. I hope that my words have somehow help comfort you.
God would rather our true feelings and emotions rather than our fake feelings. He already knows what we are actually feeling anyways: we are not fooling Him: we are only fooling ourselves.
I came on here to find a song that shows how to express our anger towards God. Because all we sing about in church is how great and good He is: which is true: but i need a song that can express my anger and hurt to Him. Lately I’ve been feeling like I don’t want to be here (on this world) anymore: i’m tired of disappointments. I would never ever kill myself but i wish my life would end sometimes. So i anyone ever reads this, i would love some prayer. If you wouldn’t mind praying for a complete stranger.
@Darcy Well said. He knows what we are thinking anyway, so just say it.
@Monica I will be praying for you. I have been in a place of thinking and feeling that before. I personally realized that much of the problem was that my focus was in the wrong place and that I needed to switch it. People will always disappoint, but God never will.
I am VERY late posting to this, but I just found it today.
I agree 100%, being angry at God is totally natural sometimes, because He gave us a brain to think with and reason with, and we’re human–saved & transformed, yes, but still human–and life hurts sometimes.
I’ve been mad at God recently for 2 main things–this un-ending heatwave, especially when our home’s air conditioning went out, and me losing a valuable camera costing $500 or so, when I’m into photography as a hobby & our budget doesn’t make it easy for us to recover quickly from that. The heatwave was outrageous to me because getting up to 105-108′F daily for almost a month is EXTREMELY unseasonable, our norms are around 94′F or so. That just makes no sense to me.
As for the camera–I couldn’t receive that as a message that I needed to be more careful, because frankly I struggle in terms of I’m always losing things and the $500 camera I lost one my wife & I share for taking photos of our kids, as well as me sometimes using it for “hobbyist” usage. Yes I know, losing a material possession vs losing a child to a car accident etc, it pales, but it STILL hurts, especially since photography is part of who & what I am. I enjoy it a lot for myself & I bless others with it taking exceptional photos of their families etc, right at their own homes on their time, and often-times for a pittance of what a pro charges, with quality that nearly matches the pro.
I am BLESSING people with this, God, it’s fulfilling part of who & what I am–and you allow me to misplace it? Couldn’t you have simply tapped me on the shoulder to let me know “hey, don’t forget your camera?” I mean, c’mon. What’s the point of me having to stretch myself so thin to replace something that STILL WORKS & is already paid for?
Both things made me very angry, and I think it’s understandable that they did. I’m glad it’s okay to vent to God, He should know how I feel even as I respect his sovereignty.
LRH